Leadership team and Build-A-Bear bring smiles to children

In 2023, the SSM Health IHT Department launched its Employee Recognition pillars focusing on I (Innovation), H (Heart), and T (Team Player). Chief Information Officer, Joy Grosser, explains, "The center of IHT is our heart. In addition to the work these team members do every day to enable the work of SSM Health, their kindness, patience, and giving nature exemplifies how we live SSM’s mission each day."

On October 12, members of the SSM Health’s IHT leadership team came together for their annual leadership development program and engagement event. As part of their connection to Mission, they partnered with Build-A-Bear and participated in a heart ceremony for 300 bears.

But their kindness didn't stop there.

Along with bear condos, birth certificates, and handwritten notes by the IHT leaders, 175 bears were donated to SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital, and 125 bears were donated to the SSM Health Treffert Center in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. On November 9, a team of IHT and Treffert Center team members gathered at the Treffert Center to assemble the bear condos and deliver the bears to the children.

Every child who attends the Treffert Academy or is served by autism services at Treffert received a new friend. The teams joined the classrooms for circle time, reading a story on gratitude, telling the children of the bears' journey, and taking the time to read the handwritten note accompanying the bear to each individual recipient. The joy and wonder on the children’s faces as the team helped them name their new friend was incredibly heartwarming.

“This partnership between Build-A-Bear, IHT leadership, and the Treffert Center team exemplifies how SSM Health lives its Mission in their daily work,” says Meg Puddy, director of community-based behavioral health services. "We are grateful for the thoughtfulness of the IHT team and the opportunity for the children we serve to have a physical reminder of the power of kindness and gratitude in their new bears."

It's amazing how a simple act of kindness can bring so much joy to others. The efforts of the IHT leadership team to spread kindness and positivity through their partnership with Build-A-Bear serve as a wonderful reminder of the impact we can all have in our daily interactions with others.